Ramotswa Lutheran church vows to fight for pastor
Bame Piet | Friday June 17, 2016 14:50
The root cause of the dispute is the sacking of Pastor Thabiso Segatlhe who has been with the Ramotswa congregation since 2007. According to a group of Ramotswa church council members Kealeboga Sekisang, Goodwill Tlhaselo, Joyce Sangate, Victor Tlhaselo and church elder Linky Makabe, the ELCB Council seems to be enjoying the presence of a dispute between the parties.
The group argues that the sacking, which started in 2010, but has never materialised, was not done procedurally because they were never consulted as required by the law.
Further, they say the pastor has driven the church from nothing to the blossoming congregation that it is today. Segatlhe continues to service the church even with the sacking hovering over his head after the candidate for his replacement declined the offer.
Infact, the congregation suspects jealousy and envy as the main cause of the rift between the church council and the Ramotswa congregation.
“The council cannot give us reasons why they do not want Segatlhe in our church. They are jealous because under Segatlhe’s leadership we have managed to build our own church, raised funds, and even purchased a minibus for the church. He is just a good leader who does his work without any financial reward from us,” said the group.
However, executive committee member Ben Tingwane argues that Segatlhe’s case is straightforward – “Motho yo o re mo kobile mo kerekeng (We have expelled that person from the church)”. He said the council informed Segatlhe that a new candidate had been identified, and that he could focus on his job as Chaplin at Bamalete Lutheran Hospital but he refused.
Bishop’s marital status
The Ramotswa congregation says it was saddened by what it calls lies by Bishop Mothusi Letlhage who indicated to the 2013 Synod that he was married. It was through that status that he managed to secure a vote. However, the church said it was shocked to hear in 2014 that the Bishop was getting married some months after he had indicated that he was married. Among the requirements is that the candidate for Bishop should be married and not a divorcee. The Ramotswa congregation said that it will not rest until the Bishop explains his lies. Tingwane said the Bishop’s marital status has nothing to do with the fact that Segatlhe has been sacked from the church. He said the Bishop was elected by the majority of church members and wondered why the Ramotswa group did not halt his wedding proceedings.
“How does his family have a bearing in this issue? Kgang ya rona ke gore Segatlhe re mo kobile. Ga se moLutere (Our contention is that Segatlhe has been explelled. He isn’t a member of the Lutheran church),” he said.
Reconciliation after 2015 Synod
According to the group, the 2015 Synod that was held at Woodpecker at the Notwane Farms did not finish its business after the police were called in to once again bar the Ramotswa delegation from taking part in the proceedings.
“We were slapped with a surprise visit from Ramotswa Police who called members to go to Ramotswa to write a statement. We insisted that the Synod would not go ahead without the Ramotswa delegation and some of our members went to Ramotswa with the police. In the group was the Bishop,” said one of the group members.
The Synod went ahead and demanded answers as to how the Bishop misrepresented his marriage status at the 2013 Synod demanding him to explain further what transpired that led to him marrying another wife. The Synod was called off after the Bishop returned from Ramotswa and declared it officially closed on grounds that he was going to initiate reconciliation proceedings with Segatlhe. The parties signed documents to the effect that the reconciliation process was the best way to bring peace to the church. However, the proceedings never took place.
Prior to the 2015 Synod, Ramotswa delegates were also denied entrance at the 2013 Synod and had to acquire a court order to be allowed in. They say that there is a conspiracy to ensure that the church is disbanded. Tingwane confirmed that the Ramotswa congregation was denied access to the Synod gatherings because the Pastor with whom they associate – Segatlhe – is no longer a Lutheran church member.
“I can confirm that the Bishop addressed Segatlhe as ‘Mister’ because Segatlhe is fired from the church; he is not a Pastor or reverend. In his correspondence with the Bishop he said he was going to sweep the Bishop’s dirty manners. We cannot allow any person to disrespect our spiritual father. We can’t allow any indiscipline. We can’t,” he said.
Exchange of letters
The current stand off emanates from correspondence between the Bishop and the pastor in which the former addressed the latter as Mr instead of pastor. After two letters with the same address, Segatlhe communicated his displeasure with the Bishop who apparently did not take kindly to the correspondence.
“Just when we were expecting to receive a letter stating the dates for reconciliation proceedings, we received one telling us that Pastor Segatlhe has insulted the Bishop and was on suspension with immediate effect. This is where we are today,” said another member. The group said their efforts to bring peace to the church have not borne any fruits and they are left with very limited choice among them being physical confrontation with the church council. They said they were shocked to read about the suspension in newspapers when they are waiting for the outcome of a pending court case slotted for next year before Justice Michael Mothobi. Tingwane who says he is a former secretary of the Ramotswa congregation said Segatlhe has for many years defied other Bishops. He said he is not qualified for the pastoral position because he holds a Degree in Humanities whilst the minimum qualification for the job is a Diploma in Theology and higher. “He is not qualified. He should just focus on his Chaplin job,” Tingwane said.
Church property and cash
The Ramotswa church insists that the council is trying to remove Segatlhe because it views him as a stumbling block for it to access the church bank accounts and its wealth in property. The members said the church has worked hard to build church buildings and other property with the help of its partners and the membership. “We have no problem with the pastor and we do not understand why these people are bent on trying to destroy him. They have come up with all sorts of stories to a point that they even questioned his qualifications, yet they knew that he went to University for his pastoral studies with the church’s blessings,” they said.
Blackout on Ramotswa congregation
The church believes that the council has blacklisted it to a point that any individual or congregation that associates with the Ramotswa congregation in any way is immediately victimised. One such example, they say, is the recent sacking of a Francistown pastor who had invited the Ramotswa congregation for a joint service. The council disapproved of the invitation but the pastor insisted on it.
“As we speak she is jobless and the council said it wanted nothing to do with her despite the Labour Office’s ruling that her dismissal was unlawful. They preferred to pay her and relieve her of her duties,” said a group member.
Tingwane denied any vendetta against the Ramotswa congregation saying all members should understand that the property and cash was acquired through the use of the Lutheran Church name. “This church belongs to ELCB, just like all other Lutheran churches across the country. It is not for individuals, or a group of people,” he said.
Tingwane added that the Francistown pastor continually defied church instructions until she was fired in a recent case which has nothing to do with the joint church service with Ramotswa congregation. He said that ELCB only wants the public to know that Segatlhe is not a member of the Lutheran Church. “That’s all we want the public to know, so that when they invite him they are aware that he is not our member.”